Desolate

Probably the person who thus far has pushed drone and doom as far as it can possibly go, Stijn's furthest push into slowness is the glacier of molasses crawl that is this band. While previous attempts at enjoying Stijn's work failed hard due to the incredible minimalism- sure, there was appreciation but I'd never normally listen to it- Beyond Black Void manages to make something intensely listenable and enjoyable, despite the incredibly low tempos.

A simple description of this band is that it's basic, stripped down funeral doom slowed down an insane amount. The guitar leads play a new note every 5 or so seconds, the rhythm guitars churn out some low, ridiculously slow riffs, crunching and fuzzing away for the whole song.

..And that's it. I don't really know why this works so well- minimalism certainly isn't, or shouldn't be a means to itself- but despite the lack of everything here, it's pretty enjoyable. The "songs" have a very well thought out sound and the steady, pulsing fuzz crunches throughout them are extremely enjoyable. Someone I know once described drone doom as "ambient played with metal instrumentation" and while I don't always think that's accurate all the time it certainly applies here. There's not a great deal in terms of memorable riffs- most repeat every couple of minutes and are pretty amelodic - just low and unfolding soundscapes that you can really lose yourself in.

I guess that's what makes this so much better then the other Stijn I've heard- this is certainly very immersive indeed. Overall I'd say that "Storm over Jupiter" is where the best on offer is; it's very slow and quite evocative of the slow, steady crushing sensation that is a storm such as that. It's a great tune and a good example of just how effective this strange, alien kind of sound can be.

Yeah, overall this is a pretty solid release. While Stijn still has a long way to go in terms of making album covers (this one has some of the worst CGI I've ever seen), this is an excellent, if extreme piece of doom/drone/ambient that is well worth getting.

I first encountered Stijn Van Cauter after a friend gave me Until Death Overtakes Me, one of the most boring things I've heard. Out of curiosity, I checked out his other projects and BBV made the biggest impression (meaning I actually remembered this one).
The first question that comes to mind when listening to this: "What the hell is this?". Well, Desolate should'nt even be considered music, not to mention metal. The lyrics are minimalistic, everything revolves around ridiculously low-tuned and distorted guitars and lenghty songs about nothing really. The album could have been named "Ice Cream for Dummies" and have lyrics about radioactive bathtubs, it would have been the exactly same thing. This is not something to listen to, this is for those moments when you're busy and aren't in the mood for (real) music.

Strangely enough, I like Storm Over Jupiter exacly for that. If there was something to listen to, I might be distracted from whatever I'm working on, but I really don't want silence. It's a pretty good atmospheric...noise. Unfortunately, from a musical standpoint, this is utter nonsense. If there is a rythm, I can't find it. The vocals are inaudible because they tend to mix with the guitars and background noise and diversity seems to be an alien concept. Maybe this is how funeral\drone should sound, but I still can't consider this music. He could have recorded the subway and it would have made more sense.
Still, Storm Over Jupiter is the best funeral\drone I've ever listened to. I don't recommend this to anyone or anything. I don't even know how to rate it. I guess I'll give Stijn 10% as prize for the best music-considered noise and 15% for the practical uses of Storm Over Jupiter.
There just isn't anything more...

Stijn Van Cauter is something of a legend in the doom scene, as much as for the sheer quantity of his releases as for the fact that many of his projects rank among the slowest music out there. While some of his projects succeed (Until Death Overtakes Me and Wijlen Wij being the two best examples), Beyond Black Void exemplifies everything that is wrong with this type of music. Slow is one thing, but complete lack of movement is another. While such a dedication to minimalism is commendable and, indeed, very difficult to pull off on a musical level, this album absolutely fails on every aesthetic factor. This album's attempt to become the slowest, heaviest and most sorrow-filled doom album actually has the reverse emotional effect, turning this into one giant parody of everything doom should be.

This is so, so bad. There is nothing interesting about this release. Literally, nothing happens. Songs start to build up to something that simply never materializes, then devolve back into what they were playing to begin with. There aren't enough ideas in any of the songs to make them worthwhile enough to listen to. Yes, I get it. You like playing slow. A note every 10 seconds sounds interesting for all of 1 minute. Struggling through the entire album is a feat in and of itself. While agonizingly long, drawn out songs are the name of the game in the drone/funeral world, things need to happen for the listener to be drawn in. Even Sunn O))) change things up every now and then, and they have a pretty sweet guitar tone too. Beyond Black Void have neither. Sure, the guitar is tuned hilariously low, but a downtuned guitar does not a doom album make. The ever-present lead guitar's tone is absolutely atrocious. Stijn's growls are also incredibly low, to the point that they become ridiculous rather than sorrowful. Rather than add to the atmosphere, like Skepticism's vocals, here they simply make the whole thing sound even more pathetic,

I know that doom, especially the kind that Stijn specializes in, is supposed to be personal, but at least make an attempt to make the lyrics remotely understandable. The only band that can get away with completely unintelligible vocals is Skepticism. Then again, with how cliche the lyrics are, maybe it's for the best I can't actually tell what he's saying without the lyrics handy ("pain...thrive in me," come on). Also, I'm sure EverVoid took a lot of creative effort to write that one word over and over again.

Beyond Black Void is another project where the hype has overtaken the actual music. Sure, it's amazingly slow, and the songs are incredibly long. However, upon actually listening to the songs, one realizes just how little there is to this project. Doom, especially funeral doom, is supposed to elicit some sort of emotion out of the listener (usually depression and/or self-loathing). I feel nothing when I listen to Beyond Black Void, unless boredom counts as an emotion. There is quite frankly nothing redeeming about this album in the least. The only reason it scores any points at all is because I will admit BBV have earned the right to be named the slowest doom band on the planet. I'm sure there will be all sorts of outrage over how I simply don't "get" Stijn's "art," but I could care less. This is the single worst doom album I have ever heard, and certainly ranks up there with the worst album ever.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to put "Aes" on and listen to this genre done correctly.

‘Desolate’ is the first, and so far only release from Stijn’s one man Drone/Funeral Doom project, Beyond Black Void. In my opinion, it is one of his finest works. The most notable qualities are that with this project, he has taken the aesthetics of minimalism, slow tempi, and crushing heaviness to extremes. The result is three long tracks of extremely oppressive music, bleak yet often with a curious beauty also.

It is obvious from the very first notes of the leading track, Desolate, how appropriately titled this work is. The opening guitar lead is extremely slow, with approximately ten seconds between each note. The only real movement in this section is the delay on the guitar, which is none too fast either. There is no percussion present yet. The minimalism is rather extraordinary, especially on the first listen. A very faint, almost inaudible drone lurking underneath the melody adds depth, albeit in a very subtle manner. This, combined with the layering of the guitars means that the sound never becomes too thin or washed-out sounding.
After several minutes of this very sparse intro, the main part of the song kicks in. As the rather apathetic lead guitar line continues, an onslaught of noise begins underneath. This is created using baritone guitar, timpani on the accented beats, and vocals. Here Stijn has embraced the funeral doom tradition of not emphasising vocals as much as is normal in most other musical styles. His growls are very deep, drawn-out, and almost indistinguishable from the guitar at times. They form a part of the very heavy, bass-rich chords instead, and add fullness to the accompaniment. The deep, droning sounds threaten to drown out the lead which floats above them, but never quite succeed. It sounds like the melody is struggling to survive out of habit, rather than any strong desire. This song exudes nihilism, even more than the rest of the album.

About halfway through the song, the bass-heavy parts drop out and the music returns to a style similar to the intro. This continues for some minutes, and this section carries a strong sense of tension. This is caused by the fact that most of the phrases build up in a manner that promises a climax, but then fails to deliver, returning instead to a more passive interpretation of the melody. Finally however, the promise is kept and the crushing parts join in again, sounding all the more powerful for the listener’s anticipation.

The second song is the majestic Storm Over Jupiter. This has a much more consistent sound than the previous track, in that almost all of it consists of the higher leads above the tumultuous baritone guitar. A (relatively) short intro and outro in a style similar to the beginning of Desolate provide the only relief from the half-hour onslaught. Again, this song proves to live up to its title, sounding very much like a sonic representation of the giant storm that permanently cloaks part of that planet. It has a huge sound, extremely dark and heavy. The variations are very slow to reveal themselves, and feel more like billows among clouds or something equally organic and implacable than the rather mechanical concept of the “riff”.
The beauty of this song is in the lead guitar, which mostly takes the back seat to the droning deeper noises. However when it does ring out, it proves a very effective counterpart to the oppressive baritone guitar. To extend the storm metaphor, it is like light through the clouds, or possibly a break in the wind’s buffeting which momentarily provides relief – before the full fury of the storm returns unabated.
This song is very nearly an instrumental, however when the vocals do appear Stijn seems to be trying to replicate the sound of wind. They are similar to those on the first track, but more guttural, slightly howling, and less ambient. They add an extra element to the feeling of desperation that infuses this piece.

Finally the album closes with EverVoid, which feels almost short with a mere fifteen minutes play time. This track has a very different feel than the other two, largely due to the greater emphasis placed on the low end of the song. It is much more droning. The higher leads are largely absent, and when they appear, they are much more powerful, driving the song rather than passively adding detail. Some interesting bell-like noises also turn up from time to time, which provides an interesting variation to the sound.
The vocals are also much more in the foreground, in the form of very deep and protracted growls. The vocal style, in addition to the sound of the main riff heard at the beginning remind me of Beyond All Dreams by Stijn’s project, “The Ethereal”. However BBV is much deeper and heavier, as well as being significantly slower and less riff based.

My only real criticisms of the album are that firstly, he sometimes seems to have had trouble in keeping the rhythm correctly. For example in the heavier parts of the title track, the baritone guitar that keeps the pulse is not playing consistent note lengths. This is possibly due to an inability to maintain the low tempo (about 24 BPM by my reckoning), or possibly it is a deliberate attempt to make the sound more organic. If it was the latter, I feel that it was a poor choice, as it can tend to make the recording sound somewhat sloppy.
My other complaint is that some of it sounds excessively monotonous and repetitive. Well, it is intended to be; this is a significant part of its power and emotional impact. However at times it feels like this aesthetic was taken too far, at the expense of keeping the music interesting. This criticism is especially true of the almost unwieldy Storm Over Jupiter.

Overall, however, this album is truly excellent. It is a must for fans of the more extreme side of doom, and especially those who enjoy Stijn’s other works. However, I also suggest that listeners with a short attention span stay clear, as the length and nature of the songs ensure that a more casual listener may hear only a wall of sound that goes nowhere. To a more involved ear, the music is deep, rich and highly emotive, truly stunning, and oppressively brilliant.